Railway-car end construction.



P. M. BEARD.

RAILWAY CAR END CONSTRUCTION.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 1| 19M.

Patented Dec. 19, 1916.

WWW I Paa/ M Bemfi PAULM. BEARD, OF LOUIS, MISSOURI, ASSIGNOR T0 AMERICAN CAR AND FOUNDRY COMPANY, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

Specification of Letters Patent.

RAILWAY-CAR END CONSTRUCTION.

Patented Dec. 19, 191%.

Application filed June 1, 1914. Serial No. 842,083.

To all whom it may concern:

\ 'a full, clear, and exact description, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains tomake and use the same, reference being had .to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, 1n which- Figure 1 is an elevational view of a car end of my improved construction. Fig. 2 1s a plan view of the car end. Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken approximately on theline 33 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a vertical section similar to Fig. 3, and illustrating a modified form of the car end.

My invention relates generally to railway cars and more particularly to a pressed metal structure which forms the end wall of a car. I a

In railway cars, and particularly those designed for and used in the transportation of freight, the end portions of the car body and the end walls are subjected to strainsand from service shocks and stresses resliltin I vibrations and a so by reason of the sudden starting and stopping of the cars, and the shifting of the load and contents of the cars while the latter are in transit.

is, in effect, a hollow girder. The vertically disposed ribs or corrugations which constitute beams merge into the horizontally disposed reinforcing ribs or corrugations at the meeting edges of the two sections of the end,

and the outer or opposite ends of said vertically disposed. ribs or corrugations terminate at or near the upper and lower edges of the end, thus providing a construction which includes a horizontally disposed reinforcing member which is substantially a girder and a series of vertically disposed ribs or corru gations which combine with the girder and perform the functions ofbeams. A car end thus constructed is comparatively simple and inexpensive, can be readily combined with an ordinary car underframe and superstructure, and by reason of its peculiar structure is very efl'ectlve in resisting such strains and stresses as may result from shifting loads, ordinary service shocks and vibration or collisions.

A further object of my. invention is to construct a car end from two sections of material; which sections are duplicates. This arrangement is particularly desirable from a manufacturing standpoint for thereason that the duplicate sections can be readily formed from a single set of dies.

In order to comply with the fiovernment regulations relating to cars utilized for transportation of explosives, it is necessary to provide car ends which are entirely devoid of projections, such as rivet or bolt heads, on their interior faces, for, if such construction were employed, it would be possible for a box or package of explosives when shifted suddenly within the car to strike against the projecting headv of a bolt or rivet, and thus develop sufiieient'impact'to set off or eflect a discharge of the explosives. Likewise it would be possible for a bolt or rivet when subjected to a'blow from the exterior of the car to perform the functions of a hammer and transmit to af'biox' or package of explosives positioned against the inner face of the car end, sufiicient impact to effect a'discharge of said explosives.

With this consideratiorrin' View, it is one of the objects of my invention to construct a car end having a substantially smooth flat inner face which car end ismade up of a number 0 anels, portions of which latter are bent an shaped so' that the heads on the inner ends of therivets or fastening devices which unite said sections or panels are inset a substantial distance with respect to the inner face of the completed en With the foregoing and other objects in view, my invention consists in certain novel features of construction and arrangement of parts, hereinafter more fully described and claimed.

As shown in the accompanying drawings, my improved car end is composed of duplicate rectangular sections of sheet metal, the

' joint orline of separation between said sections when -flange '13 which engages and is fixed to a suitable part of the roof structure of the car. The ends of both upper and lower sections are bent rearwardly to form attaching flanges 14 which engage and are fixed to parts of the car body s erstructure, preferably the corner posts. The upper edge of the lower section 10 is bent outwardly and thence upwardly to form a reinforcing rib 15 which is substantially TL-shape in cross section, the same extending theentire length of said lower section. This rib may v be of the. same depth throughout its length,

or as shown in Fig. 2, it may gradually decrease in depth toward its ends. A series of vertically disposed parallel reinforcing ribs or corrugations 16 are pressed outwardly from the body of the lower section 10, the lower ends of said ribs terminating at or near the lower edge of said section, and the upper ends terminating at or near the L-shaped rib 15. These ribs or corrugations perform the functions of beams which combine with the L-shaped rib 15 at the upper edge of the lower section to materially stiffen and strengthen said lower section and in order to overcome any tendency of the lower portion of the lower'section to swing outwardly relative to the rib 15 when the two sections forming the end are properly combined, the upper ends of all of the ribs or corrugations 16 terminate and merge into the horizontally disposed ortion of said rib 15. This construction is clearly shown in Fig. 3, wherein the upper ends of the ribs 16 are shown as uniting with the rib.

15 at a point midway between the plane occupied by the main body of the lower section and a parallel plane occupied by the vertical portion of the rib. 15.

In some instances it may be found desirable to provide a construction wherein the upper ends of the rib 16 are formed of sulficient depth to unite with the rib 15 in a plane near the vertical portion of said rib, which construction is clearly shown in Fig. 1. These ribs 16 may be of uniform depth and width throughout their length, or if desired, they may be formed s6 as to' gradually decrease in width and depth toward their ends.

The upper section 12, which is a duplicate of the lower section 10, is provided along its lower edge with an inverted L-shaped rib 17 which is a counterpart of-the rib 15, and when the two sections are properly assembled, the outer vertical portion of the rib 17 overlies the corresponding tion of the rib 15.

Attaching means, preferably in the form of rivets 18 are seated in the overlapping portions of the ribs 15 and 17, and as said overlapping portions are offset a substantial distance with respect to the vertical plane occupied by the bodies of the sections 10 and 12, the heads or the inner ends of the attaching devices are located a substantial distance away from the inner face of the end wall. By virtue of this construction it will be impossible for the rivets or attaching means to transmit the impact of blows received by the heads on the outer ends of said rivets, to freight such as boxes. or packages of explosives, which may be positioned immediately against the inner face of the car end.

The upper section 12 is provided with vertically disposed outwardly pressed ribs or corrugations 19 which are counterparts of and perform the same functions as the ribs or corrugations 16.

The overlapping and connected ribs 15 and 17 combine to form a transversely extending reinforcin and strengthening member which is, in e ect, a hollow or tubular girder. In conjunction with the vertically disposed beams formed by the ribs,or corrugations 16 and 19, this transverse tubular member materially reinforces and stiffens the entire car end, and as a result all internally or externally applied shocks or blows and all service strains and vibrations will be transmitted directly to the car under- 1 frame and superstructure.

The ends of the beams formed'by the ribs or corrugations I6 and 19 are practically tied to the flanges 11 and 13 at the top and bottom of the end, and to the L- shaped ribs 15 and 17 which constitute the horizontally disposed tubular girder, and thus a very strong and rigid structure is produced which not only resists the strains and stresses of externally applied shocks but is especially effective in resisting all tendency of shifting loads to push or force the end outwardly.

It will be understood that the ends of the tubular' irder formed by the L-shaped ribs 15 and 1 are secured to the car super-struck ture, andthus the ends of the beams formed by the ribs 16 and 19 are provided with a very rigid and substantial support at the horizontal center of the end.

A car end of my improved construction is comparatively simple, can be easily and cheaply manufactured for the reason that only a single set of'dies is required for the vertical por- V production of the duplicate sections, and

said sectionswcan be easily and quickly assembled to produce the completed end;

As hereinbefore described, the heads on the inner ends of the rivets orbolts utilized in connecting-the overlapping edges of the sections or sheets of which the car end is formed are inset a. substantial {distance with respect to the inner face of -fthe, end, and thus cars equipped with my improved end are applicable for use in the ztransportation of explosivesinasmuch as said ends comply with the regulations and requirements of the Government relating to transportation of explolower edge bent to form aninverted L-' slves.

It will be readily understood that minor changes in the size, form and donstruction of the various parts of my improved car end may be made'and substituted for those herein shown and described, without departing from the spirit of my invention, the scope of which is set forth in the appended claims.

I claim: I

1. A car end composed of a pair of duplicate sections of sheet metal "having outwardly pressed reinforcing ribs or corruga-,

tions at their meeting edges, which ribs or corrugations combine to form a substan tially hollow transversely disposed girder.

2. In a car end, a lower sheet metal section having its upper edge bent to form an L-shaped rib, an upper section having its shaped rib which overlies the L-shaped rib on the'upper edge. of the lower section, and attaching means seated in the overlapping portions of said ribs.

3. In a car end, a lower sheet metal section having its upper edge bent to form an L-shaped rib, an upper section having its lower edge. bent to form an inverted L- shaped rib which overlies the L-shaped rib on the upper edge of the lower sectiorf; at taching means seated in the overlapping portions of said ribs, and each section having pressed therein a series of outwardly projecting ribs or corrguations.

4. In a' car end, a lower-sheet metal-sec tion having its upper edge bent to form an L-shaped rib, an .upper section having its lower edge bent to.form an inverted L- shaped rib which overlies the Lsshaped rib on the upper edge of the. lower section, at taching means seated. in the overlapping portions of said ribs, and each section having pressed therein a series of outwardly, projecting ribs or corrugat ons, which unite" with the ribs, on the'meeting edges of'said J tions having their meeting edges bent outsections. i

5. In a car end, a pair of dupl cate secplane of the sections to form a horizontally disposed substantially hollow reinforcement extending across the entire width of the end structure.

6. In a car end, a pair of duplicate sections having their meeting edges bent outwardly to form a pair of overlapping ribs which terminate in av plane horizontally offset from the plane of the sections and combine to form a horizontally disposed transversely extending substantially hollow reinforcement, and attaching means seated in said overlapping ribs..

'7. In a car end, a pair of sections having their meeting edges bent outwardly to form a pair of overlapping ribs which combine to form a horizontally disposed transversely extending substantially hollow reinforce-- ment, and each section being provided with a series of outwardly pressed reinforcing ribs or corrugations, which join the ribs on the meeting edges of said sections.

8. In a car end, a pair of sections of sheet metal having outwardly pressed reinforcing ribs or corrugations at their meetings edges,

which ribs or corrugations combine to form a substantially hollow transversely disposed girder, and each sectionbeing provided with.

ing the transversely disposed girder.

9. In a car end, a pair of sections of sheet metal having outwardly pressed reinforcing ribs or corrugation-s attheir meeting edges, flanges on the upper and lower edges of the end formed by said sections, and a series of outwardly pressed vertically disposed ribs orcorrugations extendin at the meeting edges of sald sections, and the flanges at the upper and lower edges of the end.

10.-A-car end constructed of a plurality of superposed metal plates having their -meeting edges formed with outwardly projecting horizontal ribs extending along the length of the plates and provided with overlapping vertical flanges to form open channel beam connections, the overlapping flanges of each pair of adjacent plates being riveted together with the rivets in the trough formed by the ribs.

. In testimony whereof I hereunto afiix my signature'in the presence of two witnesses, this 28th day of May, 1914.

i PAUL M. BEARD. Witnesses:

JAMES J. CooPER, JOHN M. ROHLEING.

between the ribs 

